I finally kept my word and am sticking to my new year's resolution to lose weight. Since January 9th I have lost almost 40 lbs (318 to 280).

Every 2nd day I do 30 min cardio on either an xtrainer or recumbent bike maintaining a 135-140 HR then doing some varying weight training by targeting upper body one day then lower the next.

My diet only slightly changed in I have all but completely eliminated carbs in the evening. I still have a wrap or a bagel for lunch or breakfast. And maybe reduced my portion size a bit from last year but that's really it.

My results for January were minimal as I figured it was due to the weight training building up my muscle mass, then in February things took off and I started losing weight consistently until late April where I weighed in at around 285.

The problem is that in the last month and a half, I have only managed to lose 5lbs even though my general routine and diet are the same. The only thing I have noticed is that I have to pedal MUCH faster or stride MUCH faster to keep my HR up around 140. I guess I could try jacking up the resistance on the cardio machines..

with weight loss in the first month introducing weight training and cardio alone will show results just because you are burning more calories than you take in if nothing else change in your diet or daily routine.
our bodies fight to stay in homeostasis......our bodies dont want to gain muscle, also it doesnt want to lose fat.
because of that we have to keep tricking our metabolism, the reason you stopped losing weight is because your metabolism in essence caught up with your activitey.. you body finds it routine now to do the exersize and has adjusted itself accordingly
i suggest that you clean up your diet a little and introduce cardio after you weight training for 15-20 intence minutes.
granted i have no idea how you are eating now, there was no mention of what types of meals of the frequency.
try 6 "clean" meals
they will make a world of difference.

as for you having to do more to get your heart rate up...congrats you are in better shape

with weight loss in the first month introducing weight training and cardio alone will show results just because you are burning more calories than you take in if nothing else change in your diet or daily routine.granted i have no idea how you are eating now, there was no mention of what types of meals of the frequency.try 6 "clean" meals

I didn't want to radically change my diet because I knew my will power just isn't there. This is my usual daily food intake:

Breakfast at 7am: Either a bagel with cream cheese, a wrap with ham or chicken or sometimes cereal.. usually with a glass of OJ - coffee when I get into the office around 8am.

Lunch at noon varies, I have caved in every so often and gone to a burger joint with coworkers, but for the most part its a pita or a tortilla wrap with a juice or an iced tea.

Late afternoon some fruit or a granola bar on days I go to the gym.

Evening varies but I really put in the effort to drop carbs for dinner so really no potatoes or noodles or pasta then. When I get back from the gym I grab a glass of some veg cocktail like V8 or the like.

kevin harris wrote:

as for you having to do more to get your heart rate up...congrats you are in better shape

Juice, cereal and granola bars seem to be the problem. If you HAVE to have granola and cereal, Kashi makes some that are decent. If you want juice, you really need to get a juicer and make it yourself. That stuff at the store is no good. Really though, cut the simple carbs and sugars out. Have more protein. The thing is, if you want to have more grain stuff, you have to go lower on the fruit. If you want to eat a lot of fruit. You are better off just eating fruit, veggies, nuts and meat. Like maybe a paleo or zone kind of thing. It depends on what you like.

Now if you are going pretty hardcore on the weights, you might not loose much scale weight. I lost an incredible ammount of fat without the scale going down much at all.

I'm not a fruit nut, but was always told that fruits are good for you. Mostly its just oranges and bananas that I eat. I heard that apple juice isn't the best for someone with my goals because of the sugars so I stay away.

As far as the weights go, I think I'm going full bore anyway.. generally 3s of 8r until failure, if I can hit 3s 10r then I bump up the weight a bit. I only use the machines ( I know I should do some freeweights too)... meaning a bicep curl machine (currently at 90lb), tricep pulldown (105lb), pec fly (180lb), lateral raise (100lb), calf raise (200lb+BW), pulldown (230lb) among others.. and on a seated leg press I've done 3s 8r of 540lbs but it just wasted me.

training at the rep range of 8-10 in generally for muscle building. grate becasue muscle in essence helps burn fat, the problem is though your diet, you are not eating a muscle friendly diet
where is protien?

unless you the genetics like a god you will not build muscle unless you eat for,
but from what you have said it doesnt really sound like that is the goal

for fat loss i would stay in the 12-15 range and superset opposing muscle groups when you train

There's always some chicken breast or ham or the like in at least two of my daily meals... plus I do have a glass of soy milk in the vicinity of a workout. Half a handful of almonds here and there as well. No protein shakes or drinks though, and I don't really want to start on those.

I can tell at least that my biceps are huge compared to last year anyway.

Just wanted to drop a hearty Congratz, losing weight is a bitch. Unfortunately the leaner you get the harder it will be to keep losing so you'll have to keep tweaking your nutrition based on current weight and change up workouts a little more frequently. Check out some of the articles on t-nation.com for ideas, I find it a great place for that (though the amount of information there can be staggering). Best of luck with your goals!

Oatmeal's the grain for me. Inexpensive and it keep my energy level high. I love those slow-burning grains.

My rule is: Eat fruit, drink water. Definitely lay off the apple juice. Fresh squeezed OJ is the way to go. A couple oranges will do it. And yes, it does sound like you need a bit more protein. Congrats on your weight loss.

Oatmeal's the grain for me. Inexpensive and it keep my energy level high. I love those slow-burning grains.

My rule is: Eat fruit, drink water. Definitely lay off the apple juice. Fresh squeezed OJ is the way to go. A couple oranges will do it. And yes, it does sound like you need a bit more protein. Congrats on your weight loss.

I really started to notice the weight loss after switching completely from the white flour based crap to whole grain stuff.

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